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Longhorns finish 4th in Cabela’s Holiday Shoot Out

By Russ PankoninThe Imperial Republican Summing up the Longhorns’ three games in the Cabela’s Holiday Shoot Out in Sidney Coach Carl Zuege sounded something like this: Cheyenne South in the opener—“happy with the win; disappointed with how we played. It was a sloppy game.” Gering in the semi-finals—“We were right there. Disappointed that we lost; happiest with the effort of the three games.” Sidney in the third-place game—“We looked shell shocked. They hit shots early; we didn’t. That should never happen to this team. Hopefully they learn from this and it should never happen again.” The Longhorns went 1-2 in the tournament to finish fourth. They won their opener over Cheyenne South 44-36, in the semis, they lost to Gering 50-55 and suffered a 63-38 loss to Sidney in the third place game. “It was a good challenge, playing three straight days.” Zuege said. “Physically, were deep enough for three days in a row.” The real challenge, he said, is mentally. Since it’s a holiday tournament, there’s the lack of routine that comes during the school week, he added. Going into the tournament, Sidney was the only team to have beaten the Longhorns. Zuege said they felt they blew an opportunity in that Dec. 13 game and they wanted to avenge that loss. Both teams were coming off a loss in the semi-finals so it was a question of which team could bounce back, Zuege noted. “Sidney came out with all the intensity; we didn’t,” Zuege said. On the positive side, Zuege said they played some good Class B competition throughout the tournament. They played Gering, the Shoot Out winner, to within five. In the championship game, Gering beat Laramie, Wyo., 67-38. On Tuesday night, they returned to regular season action, defeating a scrappy Dundy County-Stratton team 66-50. On Friday, they play host to border rival Holyoke, Colo. They’ll be home again next Tuesday when Southern Valley comes to town. Jayvee games Friday begin at 4 p.m. On Tuesday, jayvee games begin at 3:30 p.m. MT. Cheyenne South Both teams got off to the sluggish start, putting up just seven points between each other in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Longhorns got on track offensively, pouring in 17 for a 20-12 halftime lead. Cheyenne South narrowed that lead to just two, 28-26, going into the final quarter. The Longhorns rallied for 16 in the final eight minutes, including a 7-12 effort at the free throw line to secure the 44-36 win. Kelton Fisher led the scoring with 17, followed by 13 from Jeff Dickey. The game also marked Justus Wallin’s return to action. He’d been sidelined since the season began with a leg injury. Imperial 44 2 PT. 3 PT. FT/ FG FG FTA F TP Travis Luhrs 2 0 2-6 0 6Ryan Moline 0 0 0-1 4 0Kevin German 0 0 0-0 0 0Dan Sullivan 0 0 0-0 3 0Jeff Dickey 3 2 1-2 2 13Kelton Fisher 6 0 5-6 1 17 Justus Wallin 2 0 1-2 1 5Trey Milner 1 0 0-4 0 2Isaac Sorensen 0 0 1-2 1 1TOTALS 14 2 10-23 12 44Cheyenne South 36Michael DeBruyn 14, Monte Alexander 2, Robert Dilsaver 3, Ryan Fawcett 6, Kyhler Cummings 9, Shane Dilsaver 2.Cheyenne South’s totals: 2 pt. FG—10; 3 pt. FG—4; FT/FTA—4-8; Fouls—18; TP—36.Points by quarters:Imperial 3 17 8 16—44Cheyenne So. 4 8 14 10—36Gering The Longhorns kept pace with Gering from the tip, trailing just three, 13-16, after one quarter of play. They stayed within striking distance at half, trailing by just four, 22-26. The Longhorns hit six baskets in the third, along with a free throw, to pull within two, 35-37. Zuege said his team got tight in the fourth quarter, almost timid. Gering took advantage and edged ahead in the fourth, forcing the Longhorns to send them to the free throw line down the stretch. Gering’s last five points came at the line, to give them a 55-50 win. Offensively, the Longhorns finished with three players in double figures, all with 13, including Fisher, Dickey and Travis Luhrs. Imperial 50 2 PT. 3 PT. FT/ FG FG FTA F TP Travis Luhrs 3 2 1-3 1 13Ryan Moline 0 0 0-0 4 0Kevin German 1 0 0-1 2 2Dan Sullivan 0 0 1-2 2 1Jeff Dickey 3 2 1-2 3 13Kelton Fisher 5 0 3-8 4 13 Justus Wallin 1 0 0-0 0 2Trey Milner 1 0 0-0 1 2Isaac Sorensen 1 0 2-2 1 4TOTALS 15 4 8-18 18 50Gering 55Joses Palomo 9, Christian Groskopf 17, Riley Haug 2, Justin Brester 2, Isaiah Wilson 5, Austin Hoffman 6, Taylor Nelson 1, Grant Olsson 13.Gering’s totals: 2 pt. FG—11; 3 pt. FG—5; FT/FTA—18-25; Fouls—13; TP—55.Points by quarters:Imperial 13 9 13 15—50Gering 16 10 11 18—55Sidney In the third-place game, Sidney dominated the entire first half, putting up 17 in the first quarter and 23 in the second for a 40-16 lead at the break. Halftime saved us, Zuege said. In the second half, the Longhorns came out stronger, putting up 10 in the third and 12 in the fourth. Dickey was the only player in double figures with 17. Imperial 38 2 PT. 3 PT. FT/ FG FG FTA F TP Travis Luhrs 0 0 4-4 3 4Ryan Moline 0 1 0-0 2 3Kevin German 0 0 0-0 3 0Dan Sullivan 0 0 0-0 2 0Destyn Milner 1 0 0-0 0 2 Jeff Dickey 5 0 7-9 1 17Kelton Fisher 1 0 0-0 1 2 Justus Wallin 1 0 2-2 1 4Trey Milner 1 0 0-0 4 2Isaac Sorensen 2 0 0-2 2 4Kevin Chavira 0 0 0-0 1 0Jared Sharp 0 0 0-2 0 0TOTALS 11 1 13-19 20 38Sidney 63Brady Radcliffe 1, Lane Harvey 5, Paxton Ehler 16, A. Linneman 2, Cutter O’Connell 4, Logan Lewis 3, Tyler Wintholz 6, Lucas Rosenbaum 8, Cody Frerichs 14, Nick Castner 2, Jake Sager 2. .Sidney’s totals: 2 pt. FG—20; 3 pt. FG—4; FT/FTA—11-17; Fouls—19; TP—63.Points by quarters:Imperial 7 9 10 12—38Sidney 17 23 14 9—63